board leadership succession
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TRANSCRIPT
BOARD DEVELOPMENT COURSELEADERSHIP IN TRANSITION
INSTRUCTOR ANNE ACKERSON
This program is made possible with support from American Express Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency
Leading by Design:
Maintaining the Momentum with Training
• What is board leadership succession?• What is at Stake?• Is it a policy, a procedure, a plan?• Who’s responsible for board leadership succession?• Creating a “Leadership Pipeline”
•Defining Leadership Attributes•Articulating future board leadership needs•What the organization needs to have in place•Recruiting for leadership
• How to Start• Succession Planning Checklist
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What is Board Leadership Succession?
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It is an organizational mindset and commitment that does not leave leadership to chance:
• Goes beyond standard Bylaws• Grounded in the dynamism of nonprofit organizations• Strategic approach to match skills and attributes with organizational needs• Requires organizational commitment to developing the leadership bench• It’s more about the future than now
What’s at Stake?4
Yvonne Harrison and Vic Murray, “The Best and Worst Board Chairs”, The Nonprofit Quarterly (summer 2007)
Board Chairs Wield A Lot of Powero Organizational success is directly related to the effectiveness of
a board’s chairpersono Board chairs have influence over other board members, CEO’s
and management teams, and external stakeholders
An Effective Board Chair…o Is committed to action and exerts influence collaborativelyo Is a force for changeo Possesses both “Emotional and Spiritual Intelligence”o Is a “conductor” not a “caretaker”
What’s at Stake?
Smooth Transition Incoming and outgoing leadership can overlap Competencies can be strengthened Trust built
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Is Board Leadership Succession a policy, a procedure, a plan?
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Language in the Bylaws that speaks to the issue and refers to a specific document
Job description for the chairperson’s role that includes Specific responsibilities to the full board, individual board members, CEO and
other key staff, and stakeholders Qualifications for the job
A policy or procedural statement for use by the board, related committees and staff leaders
Identification of board succession issues in the strategic plan
What ought to be in writing and approved
Who is responsible for Board Succession Planning?
Full Board Board Development/Nominating Committee Staff Leadership
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Highly – rated Attributes Trustworthiness Intelligence Good Listening skills
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Creating a “Leadership Pipeline”:Defining Leadership Attributes
Low – rated Attributes Dictorial CriticalMotivated by self - interest
Yvonne Harrison and Vic Murray, “The Best and Worst Board Chairs”, The Nonprofit Quarterly (summer 2007)
What would be on your organization’s list of leadership attributes?What would be on your organization’s list of leadership attributes?
Creating a “Leadership Pipeline”: Articulating future board leadership needs
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Important to come together around a list of “must-have” leadership competencies that embody specific attributes, such as
Relationship competencies Commitment and action competencies Analytic skill competencies “Willingness to create” competencies Ability-to-influence competencies
Creating a “Leadership Pipeline”: What the Organization Needs to Have in Place
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A Well – Organized Board Attracts Leaders• Timely and focused board meetings• Commitment to delegation of responsibilities, transparency, and
accountability• Strategic plan in place and best practices identified• Free flowing dissemination of information with senior staff• Effective communication systems• Procedures in place to reduce individual’s fears or reluctance to assume a
leadership role
Creating a “Leadership Pipeline”: What the Organization Needs to Have in Place
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Expose potential leaders to
the leadership comptetencies your organization ranks highly current or former outstanding board members innovative thinkers who will encourage them to stretch
Creating a “Leadership Pipeline”: Recruiting for leadership
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Armed with knowledge about the Organization’s current and future strategic directions
(strategic plan) Leadership competencies necessary to achieve these
directions Current leadership competencies that reside on the
board (inventory) Policies and procedures in place to develop potential
leaders
Your Board Development Committee can Your Board Development Committee can initiate the cycle of identification, initiate the cycle of identification, cultivation and recruitment.cultivation and recruitment.
How to start?If necessary, identify board
champions to make the case for a succession planning strategy.
Evaluate strength and scope of current Nominating/Board Development Committee; act on weaknesses
Full Board/Key Staff/Key Stakeholder Discussion about Leadership Needs
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ToolsSuccession Planning
Assessment: what’s in place/what needs to be developed?
Assessment Action Plan: identify, assign and timeframe tasks
Skills Inventory
Strategic Plan
Succession Planning ChecklistBoard Members2008 Federation of Community Organizations & Non-Profit Sector Leadership Program, Dalhousie University
Our organization has a strategic plan to which it is committed
Board roles and responsibilities have been documented and reviewedBoard Member job descriptionChair job descriptionConflict of interest guidelinesBoard members code of conductBoard committee roles descriptions
The future skills and talent composition of the board have been assessed in light of the our organization’s future board leadership needs
Organizational expertiseRepresentationCommunity/issue knowledgeFund raising abilityCommitment to goals
We have a board recruitment planWe have a three year board recruitment/board succession outlook A standing recruitment or nominations committee is in place and reporting at least three times
a yearA board member prospects list has been developed and is up to dateOur recruitment package is up-to-dateInformation on our board, board member duties and on the nomination or recruitment process
is on our websiteWe are using our committees as stepping stones for the board
We have board development/education planWe will be conducting a board self-evaluation and will act on the resultsWe have planned (x number of educational sessions/development opportunities for board and staff
We have taken steps towards a more diverse and multi-generational board Our recruitment plan includes some diversity goals
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NYS ARTS BLOG www.nysarts.typepad.com
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Webinars and
Conversations on the BLOG!
o Ask questions
o Review Topics
o Share information
o Explore new ideas
Webinars and
Conversations on the BLOG!
o Ask questions
o Review Topics
o Share information
o Explore new ideas
On to the Blog! Do you have one or two
take-aways from these webinars that you intend to implement right away?
If so, what are they?